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PARIS – The morning after the United States men’s basketball team came back strong to beat Serbia in an epic and thrilling Olympic semifinal, the Americans began to face what awaited them in Saturday’s game. for the gold medal.
That is to say, a physical and fierce France that flies high. . . here in France.
At first, Stephen Curry compared it to the 2008 NCAA basketball tournament, when his Davidson Wildcats came from 17 down to beat Georgetown, only to face a playoff game (the Sweet 16) against an unknown opponent (Wisconsin) a few days later. .
“The challenge is to turn the page and be in a position to be part of a new team,” Curry said.
He then compared it to a final NBA Finals game on the road, where “we know the crowd is going to be loud and unpleasant for them,” Curry said.
“I bet the 12 of us could place a game where we would be in a hostile environment, whether LeBron [James] gets to our position [Golden State] in 2016 or we go to Boston [in 2022]. “Said.
So that’s necessarily what the American team is up against: the NCAA tournament regime only in a road-based environment like the NBA Finals. Other than that, it’s fine: just a legacy and expectations and, of course, a gold medal.
“Exactly where we need to be,” coach Steve Kerr said. “. . . It’s a wonderful moment in everyone’s career. “
These are wonderful races, remember. The United States has 4 NBA MVPs on its roster: Curry and LeBron were joined by Kevin Durant and Joel Embiid. Everyone is a star. The list together has 15 NBA titles, including Kerr, who won five as a player and four as a coach.
They know – as Serbia demonstrated – that this is a new era of Olympic basketball in which there is no guarantee of American dominance, but the expectations at home remain: either or yourself. The United States has won 16 of the 19 Olympic Games in which it has competed, adding 4 in a row dating back to the “Redeem Team” of 2008.
“You know the history of USAB and the wonderful good luck we’ve had since 2004,” Curry said. “There’s a strain that’s part of this. “
For France, it is different. Pressure? Yes, because the French are the hosts and have stepped up their game in the knockout stages to make anything seem possible. Even so, they enter as losers with 16. 5 points.
“Part of a dream has come true. . . ” said Frenchman Victor Wembanyama. “This is an opportunity to make even more history. The national team, this shirt brings us that other power that we don’t find anywhere else, and you can see how intense we have been in the last two games. It’s anything we all feel.
“As patriots, we love our jersey,” Wembanyama continued. We love our country. We are in a position to do as much as that.
The French will be very motivated and even if the Americans have an impressive team on paper. . . so will Germany and Canada, who felt the waves and waves of French intensity in the semi-finals and quarter-finals. finals, respectively.
“Strong” is how Kerr described France’s style, which is aided by FIBA officiating, which is a touchpoint the NBA doesn’t have. “They’re very physical. They play incredibly hard. That’s what comes out in the tape.
No one has an answer in recent years for Guerschon Yabusele, a 6-foot-8, 271-pound giant who broke into the fire with the Boston Celtics and now plays for Real Madrid of the Spanish League. He had 17 problems and seven rebounds against Germany and 22 and five against Canada. Play mercilessly on both ends of the court.
Then his defensive partner in crime, Mathias Lessort, 6-9, 256 pounds, from the Greek League, who bulldozed his way against both teams.
“They were aggressors and they hit us in the mouth,” Canadian Shai Gilgeous-Alexander said after the loss to France. “They played harder. They were the aggressors on both ends of the field.
They will benefit from abundant merits in the field: enthusiastic cheering, singing and drumming. There is a wonderful fandom for basketball in France and this French team – led not by NBA stars Rudy Gobert and Wembanyama, but by blue-collar personnel – has captured the country’s imagination.
“The enthusiasts kept me from crying,” Wembanyama said. I thank you for being who you are and for what you do: this opportunity, this thing that we are all experiencing. “
What they are experiencing is an opportunity for each and every one of them. The same goes for Americans, who will depend on each of their experiences.
“Playing France in Paris in a gold medal match,” Kerr said. “It’s much better. “
Except for having it.